CALS Comm Workshops
Our departments have great stories. We can help empower you to share them.
Once a month, the CALS Communications team hosts a workshop for all CALS departmental and unit communicators and communications enthusiasts. These sessions focus on best practices, tips and tools to ensure we are on-brand and effective in telling our college’s story.
We also seek to provide a space for networking and discussion between communicators who might not otherwise come in contact.
2022 CALS Comm Workshop Schedule
During these hour-long workshops presenters from CALS Communications and other units around campus will provide the latest practical guidance on a variety of communications topics. Have a topic you want covered? Email us!
Workshops are typically the second Thursday of the month from 10 to 11 a.m.
| Workshop Title | Host | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Creative Writing | Want to re-invigorate your writing, this workshop will get you started. | Janine Brumfield | 1/20 |
| Getting Smart Phone Savvy for Comms Work | We may not carry around a video or still camera with us, but there’s probably a smart phone in your pocket. Attend this training to learn how to make the most of your phone. | Keeshan Ganatra | 2/10 |
| Hybrid Events | With more events having both in-person and virtual components this session will prepare you to think through all of the details. | University Events Team | 3/10 |
| Photos for Stories | What is the best photo for your story, in-story layout ideas, tips for cropping and resizing and using stock photos. | Chris Liotta and Emma Bublitz | 4/14 |
| Canva Skills | Canva streamlines design work. Tune into this workshop to learn how to use it to freshen up your design work. | Adriane Clark and Leighann Vinesett | 5/12 |
| Inclusive Language | Communicating with people and groups of different backgrounds is critical. This session will review current best practices. | Elizabeth Snively | 6/8 |
| Search Engine Optimization | This training will provide best practices for website and post search-ability. | Kristin Sargent and Alastair Hadden | 7/14 |
| CALS Comm Open House | Our open house will introduce all of the services available through CALS Communications. | CALS Comm Team | 8/11 |
| Website Updates | After transitioning CALS websites to WordPress over the past five years new updates continue to release. This training will help keep you current. | CALS Web Team | 9/8 |
| Accessibility | Attend this training and make your unit’s electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. | Crystal Tenan | 10/13 |
| Social Media Analytics | Since the social media landscape is ever-changing we’ll provide up to date info to understand analytics. | Adriane Clark | 11/10 |
Catch-up on previous CALS Comm Workshops on YouTube.
Resources
Busy-Day Communications Strategy
Our goal is to make your life easier while making sure your department’s amazing stories get the coverage they deserve.
- Have great students? Send them this Q&A sheet to fill out (make sure to view in Adobe Reader), proof and post.
- Have great faculty? We have a Q&A template for them.
- Amazing alums? Same idea, different questions.
Ask for headshots with all of these, maybe write a brief introduction, and you have good content with less than 30 minutes of work.
Planning
The best way to save time is to plan and know the CALS message.
- Here’s the CALS Brand Promise and Core Messages – keep these in mind as you write, and you’ll never go wrong.
- Here is your strategic monthly communications plan at a glance – five easy pieces: CALS Comm Monthly Content Strategy. Four of those will take you half an hour or less.
- When you start to write, use the CALS Comm Post Planner to save time by quickly organizing your thoughts to stay on-message.
Recorded Sessions and PowerPoints
Unable to attend a session, or want to revisit discussions from past workshops? We have materials for you to view.
- Presentation – ‘A Beginner’s Mind’: Creative Writing Workshop – January 2020
- Video – Using Strategic Brand and Tone When Writing for NC State – October 2019
- Presentation – Using Strategic Brand and Tone When Writing for NC State – October 2019
- PowerPoint – I’m Creating a Video…Now What? – August 2019
- Video – Want to Take Better Pictures? – June 2019
- PowerPoint – Want to Take Better Pictures? – June 2019
- Video – How to Stand Out in a Saturated World – February 2019
- Video – Social Media: What Not to Do – January 2019
- Video – Photography Tricks, Tips and Basics for Research or Marketing – Sept. 28, 2017
- Video – Social Media Tips and Tricks – April 27, 2017
- PowerPoint – Department Websites Update – Feb. 23, 2017
- PowerPoint – Guide to Publishing Events and News on Department Websites – Feb. 23, 2017
- Video – 30 Minutes or Less: Busy-Day Communications – May 19, 2016
- Video – 5 Minutes or Less: Busy-Day Communications – May 19, 2016
- Video – Four Steps to Telling Fantastic Stories – April 21, 2016
- Video – Building a Communications Strategy, Part 1 and Part 2 – March 17, 2016
Catch-up on previous CALS Comm Workshops on YouTube.